This Annual Report is presented to the Episcopal Conference (IEC) on behalf of the Council for Pastoral Renewal and Adult Faith Development in accordance with the terms of reference (7.5) of the Council.
The purpose of the Annual Report is to offer to IEC, for critical comment and direction, an account of work done and work in progress under the auspices of the Council.
In March 2010 the IEC requested that terms of reference be drawn up for the Council to reflect its revised structure and function within IEC. This work was guided by the Organisational Scheme Handbook produced by IEC, and was pursued in light of a comprehensive evaluation of existing structures and processes already completed in December 2009. The final document, which was approved by IEC in March 2011, is the fruit of discerning dialogues throughout the sector.
The new Council brings together the designated bishops, the executive secretary of the Council for Catechetics, and representatives of diocesan personnel, lay people in mandated ministerial roles, youth ministry, CORI and IMU, ecclesial movements and associations of the lay faithful, and centres of theological and pastoral education and training. Executive staff attend the meetings and advance the tasks of the Council. In this way, the Council potentially mirrors the emerging Church. Its terms of reference are included as Appendix 1.
The Annual Report highlights the close relation between pastoral renewal and adult faith development and the recently-launched Share the Good News: National Directory for Catechesis in Ireland (SGN). This landmark document provides both a context and a charter for the Council, and its publication has been consistently welcomed. The contours of the Council’s commitment to the promulgation and implementation of Share the Good News will be indicated in section 7 of the report.
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